#Re:zero spoilers

[the-stopzone]

Chart of how I think the archbishops are going out

[spiegelgestalt]

Have you ever asked yourself - what does it do to the damsel if they are saved?

So re:zero has one of the most interesting explorations of the prince-who-saves-the- damsel-in-distress trope this side of Utena. And it's breaking my brain.

You see like Utena re zero begins with a princley character who saves our protagonist who his so touched by this encounter that he vows to become a prince himself. (And was that really such a good idea....?)

Spoilers under the cut

Emilia saves Subaru. He lies there, beaten up by thugs, completely at his wits end, despairing about the world and in comes Emilia who not only chases the thugs away but heals Subaru and doesn't want anything in return for her troubles. And he can't stand it. And so he offers help. His reasons are the following:

Narrative conventions dictate that the summoned person is the protagonist and hero while the cute girl who summoned him is the damsel. In a more progressive text she also gets to do some stuff to show that she isn't useless only to cutely fail and be saved again. Isekai protagonists don't get saved

He's really grateful and he's ashamed that he has troubled her and he wants to.pay her back (and how is he supposed to do that if he isn't the pretty girl who pays with sex! And he has nothing else to offer...)

He sees himself in her. He sees a genuinely good person who's a bit awkward but who means well and who will be crushed if no one's taking care of her (and maybe just maybe he wishes someone could take care of him...)

Subaru objectifies Emilia in two ways: as the shining hero who can do no wrong. She is from now on the glorious person who saved him. And at the same time he never wants her to be this hero again. Because than she might get hurt. Because than she might decide she won't need him anymore. Emilia has to be the damsel because that's his way to.make sure that she never can leave him. The man provides and the woman smiles and needs. (Subject and object)

And if this was all there was re:zero wouldn't be different from your typical isekai story. But as the story goes on some cracks start to show, some questions become louder and louder: isn't Emilia far more suited to the knight role? She is far stronger than him... Why does Emilia always remember Subarus smiling face when she thinks about what he does for her, why does she seem miserable when she hears that everything has been taken care of for her, why does she turn Subaru away again and again and tells him he is hurt and he must promise to wait for her...and how can Subaru be a good knight if he wishes for his beloved to be in danger only to prove himself. Isn't that kind of fucked up?

And you notice two things: As Subaru damsels Emilia, Emilia damsels Subaru. She's looking back. Because from her perspective Subaru came out of nowhere and saved her without any reason. And she can't stand it. It makes her feel terrible (see reason 2 +3 from Subaru) So she tries to protect him back, which he can't stand etc. Etc.

AND this game of hot potato who's supposed to be the damsel in distress becomes even more complicated if we add Satella into the mix (who Is probably (???) Emilia, kinda -kinda not) and who since the beginning of the series saves Subaru again and again and again ( and Subaru loathes her....)

where was I going with this?

Oh I know: at the end of season 2 Subaru and Emilia realized that what they need from each other is a good pep talk - they fight their own battles and the fight together and that should be enough.

[alderamiin]

(◕︿◕✿)

[gabbyp09]

[lorian-loriest-dingo]

Arc 9 : chapter 2

I love that Garfiel is a healer

She dies

Otto: oh 🧍 Soooo I don't have to make her give up her candidacy anymore?

Me : 👁️👄👁️ I expected it but you still surprise me otto

I'm curious about Emilia and Subaru as well as Julius who seems to have gone to visit them? 👀

[woodenfawn]

The Rem Infodump.

The one where i rant about rem and subaru's dynamic and why it's special but i dont think a lot of people really understand it!

This was written a while ago and i may have some things wrong, and it's also good to note I don't think subaru and rem are unnhealthy for each other in the sense that they shouldn't be together (whether romantic or platonic), i just mean the situations they were in forced them to act in certain ways!

I think a lot of people who are bigger re zero fans (who also understand what the story is about) shy away from rem as a character because she's the one "only fake fans who watch the anime for the waifus" like, but while she's not my favorite character i want to bring her a little more appreciation from this side of the fandom!!

new-to-tumblr post spam 3/4 complete, i'll slow down after this XD

I tried tagging with spoilers but just in case it didn't work: spoilers ahead!

So. The rem thing. Ive talked about it vaguely before but never went into detail cause there were people that could be spoiled. The whole point of rems attraction to subaru is not because of harem wish fulfillment. The author clearly stated he hates harems. Subaru does love both rem and emilia, but he has solidly chosen emilia and that's the end of that. It doesn't matter what romantic feelings he could have towards rem because it's already doomed. They both know it. The relationship they form episode 12 and beyond is not meant to be healthy for either of them!! Rem has been saved from her mindset of needing to atone for what she thought of her sister, but her self esteem is still AWFUL which is why she attaches herself to a "hero" instead of learning to recognize her own self worth. Subaru saved her from some things but he's not a hero and he's not exactly the person rem says he is. Partially, but not all of it. It's kind of a mutual decision of theirs to lie to each other and themselves because they need it to cope with themselves. Subaru needs to be a hero for rem or he could never step out of his depressive state. Rem needs a hero in subaru or she cannot feel loved and understood. It's not good for either of them but they don't have an alternative. NOTICE: When subaru rants about how awful he is and rem responds with her famous speech, she doesn't actually contradict much of what he says. They love each other and need each other but it's bad for the both of them. Rem lost her memories because the witches (later correction: it's the bishops) targeted her for her sin, and subaru killing himself over rem is not the action of a person in a healthy mindset. Rem's development was cut short and kind of fridging, its frustrating, but it's not basic waifu stuff and it is meant to be tragic!!!! This is also all a mirror to how subaru and emilia are!

Because while subaru constantly talks about needing to save emilia, he also calls her the main heroine. I used to think about rem as a yesman, but she does many a thing behind subaru's back for his sake the exact way he did to emilia. He learns more about the consequences of his actions that way. oh, it hurts. and oh boy the speech is so misunderstood. That is rem's promise to love him "unconditionally", without acknowledging his flaws, and it helped. It's absolutely what he needed to hear. But it wasn't good. but also, for other reasons, it mirrors another little speech.... subaru's season 2 confession to emilia. Where she can't believe he'd love her, and where he starts to list off things he's done for her and the ways she's made it hard for him. And then tells her, he still loves her, because that's who she is and he wouldn't want it any other way. Which could be taken as another niceguy rant (like a repeat of the season 1 fight) but it's NOT!! Because this is what Emilia needed to hear, because she is not the kind of person who can accept praise without a drawback or asterisk. If she heard all that, all she'd see is another pedestal to fill. this is the healthier version of the rem speech, where she can accept she's flawed and realize she's still loved. Both despite, but also for it. And... it's still not perfect. Because the characters are still growing and learning!!! They are young adults with so many problems and a whole life ahead of them and they still need to learn!!! The upsides and downsides of unconditional love,,,, and is it more unconditional if you love them "despite flaws" or "with flaws" or without seeing any? And is any of that healthy? How can it be good? How can it be bad? Maybe it can be both at once, maybe love isnt perfect!!! a lot of this is hidden in subtext, and the framing of rem's speech may even trick you cause it's triumphant but no there's so much complexity to why they say every single thing they say!!!

Subaru is a character who struggles with love for himself and with love for others, he doesn't know how to make others happy and gets caught in a loop of thinking the only way he can possibly be loved is if he's constantly putting his life on the line for others, without asking anything of them in return. which ends up with him breaking and needing support, and not knowing how to ask, which is why he yells at emilia in season 1 (doesn't help that his deepest trauma is something he is magically obligated not to share for fear of death). His relationship with emilia in season 1 is both very sweet and very unhealthy. he's just a guy with a crush on a girl who's far too good for him and he's trying to work for it but the basis for it is not good- he's attached himself to the first kind person in this new world that he knows and due to "return by death" he's far more invested in her than she is in him- she will never know everything they went through together. and then.... he finds rem. someone who didn't trust him. someone who killed him multiple times throughout the mansion arc, but someone who could understand his loneliness because she was also lonely, and wow- he managed to save her, too! and she doesn't know everything about what he's gone through, but she knows how to read his emotions like no one else can. so they... fall into a codependency. like said before, they can't live without each other, but not everything they do is good for each other. subaru, while gladly taking the role that emilia has in this new relationship, learns more about how she feels. with rem, he learns more about what it means to love, and they both know that it won't last. they didn't expect it to end so soon, though. but oh well, subaru does not have the option to stop. the nature of his powers means dying is pointless, and he has to press on anyways. and he does!!! He meets more people he thinks he can trust. some betray him, but some stick with him. Otto (my sweet boy!!!) is notable!

and now he knows more about love, about trust, about how to treat people, and how he should expect to be treated. so many things. keeping in mind it's been a while since i've watched re zero so i probably don't even have everything there is to say. but like.... then in the end, he can approach emilia with his true emotions. and he can tell her about it in a way she'll understand. and he knows he can do it without being a burden this time. he's become a better person. he's not sure if he'll be rejected, but that's not the point anymore! The point is he loves her and wants the best for her and wants her to know and hopes, no matter the outcome, that she'll be happy to know she's not alone! and the honesty, that's what his speech has over rem's. he's not putting her on a pedestal, he's not using her for the sake of his own self esteem anymore, he just wants to love!

------

Extra note on the end (talk about suicidal thinking, be warned!!!)

something I've talked about but don't have saved writing for, a bit more about rem!

I do also think Rem is suicidal. i think she and Subaru recognized each other in that mindset without ever really talking about it. To me, this relationship is two suicidal people trying to prop each other up so the other will keep living, and knowing that if they really give up the other will too. That's why the season 2 development was so punishing for Subaru. I think that Rem's terrible self esteem and feeling of needing to atone for """"ruining her sister's life"""" contributed to it, though i don't know if that's all of it. She also makes multiple comments that are extremely concerning, like how Subaru is her "reason to die", how when she was ready to die fighting the white whale she said she felt like this was the moment she was made for, and biggest of all!! When she was telling her hypothetical story of how she and Subaru would run away together, she planned it all up to the death "I'd like to die first and I'd like my family to be with me", and to me it felt like she was *trying to think of a death that would make her life worth living*. Her motivation to live is following people she can die for, and that's, that's concerning. i hope her character arc properly follows through on what's happening in her head (i don't know how arc 7 goes yet)

...and i also think that Beatrice is the first time Subaru's had to confront his mindset head-on, because Beatrice would refuse to dance around the subject. The lesson he takes from Rem carries over to both Emilia and Beatrice in healthier ways, and I think that's incredibly important!!!!

------

thank you for reading!

[alma-rita]

Re: Zero Arc 9 Chapter 11 SPOILERS

I am not just riding this-- HAHAHAHHA

-> Well... shit finally hits the fan! Woohooo!! -> Subaru ain't gonna rest in a jail cell at least~ Everyone thought it would be that -> At least Subaru isn't alone? Gonna try breaking out with Betty

-> Petra about to shine--- Tappei said so. But she do be bein observant

-> And oh my goodness, the memes are so good.

-> Not diggin on the pokeball stuff. I dig for them jjk reference~

-> SO MANY THEORIES RUNNING TO MY HEAD. AND ME READING OTHER PEOPLE'S THEORIES IN TWITTER.

meh being reminded of this theory: https://x.com/Leo_Rezero/status/1820097999131050185 now me combining with this~ https://x.com/ageekjenn/status/1825284865010360386 Me have a feeling that every "enemy of fate" will band to defeat Reinhard.... And since Priscilla will always die (Gluttony if is an exception) Would Al always strive to go to his original goal...? And since Echidna probably doesn't like em observers too, maybe Omega Echidna will actually have something huge once the Lugunica Great Disaster hits

(Noo! My crack theory! Omega Echidna might not get a redemption arc!)

Reason why I'm concerned for my beloved-- I mean, Reinhard, is because I have a feeling that in order to get to the observers, you need to take him down first. Take down the ultimate defense mechanism

This really aint impossible for a looper y'know....

Here is a meme to make myself laugh.

Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/Re_Zero/comments/1evg9cv/spoiler_meme_welcome_to_the_club/

[fall-out-girlboy]

it's been like a year since I watched re:zero but I was randomly thinking about how it'd be cute to have twins named Remus and Romulus and call them remmy and... and that's when it clicked that that's why they have those names and probably why rem is doomed by the narrative but I'm not well versed enough of a nerd to do a full compare contrast rn but How did it take me this long to even make the connection???

[kumanyak]

Promise me you'll never leave Betty again, i suppose (｀⌒´)

[megashadowdragon]

emillia as the moon to priscilla sun

Priscilla’s connection to the sun is a bit more obvious. She’s literally nicknamed The Sun Princess after all. She uses a blade made out of fire hotter than the typical, wears bright red clothes, and has orange hair. Even her pupils are a bright yellow-orange like the sun.

Priscilla as a ruler can be viewed like the sun as well. She is known to bring great prosperity to her subjects from afar. However, those who get too close to her may be burned by her harsh temperament.

In Japanese mythology, Amaterasu, the goddess of the sun, is commonly associated with fertility and growing crops. This is the very first thing she becomes known for after becoming ruler of her domain, as she helped her subjects grow their crops.

Amaterasu is also connected to pride. When she caused her brother Susanoo to go on a rampage and destroy a lot of heaven and earth she fled to a cave in shame. This caused the first winter, a very harsh period at the time.

To draw her out the other gods threw a party. In curiosity, she drew closer to the entrance only to find a mirror. Her own reflection would be what finally drew her fully out of the cave.

Amaterasu, as queen of heaven, the gods, and creation, is also associated with the idea of powerful women and female rulers. Another contrast worth mentioning is luck. As Priscilla says, the world itself bends to always suit her. She often finds herself on top even without much effort of her own.

some reddit comments I had seen in regards to sun and moon

and why its emillia and priscilla

There are a lot of scenes in re:zero where the moon is a center point and Reinhart just happens to be in a few of them.

Secondly it's fairly certain now that the moon represents Satella, the most blatant hint being that in Mimigau if the male version of Satella is named Luna.

Most of the legends and fables you mentioned regarding the moon fit Satella just as well:

The story of the rabbit on the moon tells that one day the man on the moon came down to earth and disguised himself as a beggar. When he asked four animals for food, three were able to provide some. But the rabbit was only able to give him grass.

Impressed by his self-sacrifice and generosity, the man saved the rabbit and brought it back to live with him on the moon. That’s why you can see the outline of a rabbit on it today.

Because of this, the rabbit and the moon represent charity and self-sacrifice. These obviously are core facets of Reinhard’s character.

twitter . com/VortechsTG/status/1656501691024543745

The rabbit in the moon:

Tappei mentioned that if Emilia would be an animal she would be a rabbit, since she and Satella are similar in appearance I'm going to assume she would be the same

The rabbit jumped into the fire to feed the man, but the man saved the rabbit. Satella wants Subaru to kill her and he wants to save her.

Tsukuyomi:

wants to bring order, but create chaos. Satella went mad and destroyed half the world, but before this we know from Arc 6 that Volcanica knew her and were friends. Also Hoshin in Isekai Quartet said that he and his friend wanted to save the world.

Yin and Yang:

The moon and lunar energy represents Yin and so does shadow magic which Satella is a great practitioner of.

BUT I do believe that Reinhart is actually both the sun and the moon, as in I think he represent the concept of balance/perfection. He has the best of both worlds Yang attributes: strength, courage, tall build, red hair; Yin attributes: discipline, charming, beauty, blue eyes.

Reinhart himself in the story is mostly a reactionary force. If a calamity like Puck is unleashed he is there to stop him to bring back order and balance. If he is lacking in any way he receives a blessing to fill that void.

It also makes Priscilla looks even more like rival to Emilia. If Emilia and Satella share symbolism then we get:

Fire vs Ice (Emilia)

Sun vs Moon (Satella)

Yang vs Yin (Satella)

Arrogant capable noble vs foolish kind village girl

Both were born to be loved by the world.

Those two share so many opposite traits it almost looks like Pris was the original rival before story took proper shape.  

 ( the person means love rival 

[the-stopzone]

This is based off my repeating arcs theory.

I wasn't sure at first if Arc 8 was suppose to be the mirror to arc 4 at first due to the introduction of Echidna, but after @artbyfinnbrown pointed out the similar ends of 3 and 8 (particularly that top notch Rem and Priscilla comparison), I'm convinced 9 is the next 4.

Arc 9 has also already had alot of big mirrors setup to 4. Otto with the book of wisdom recently complaining about Subaru saving everyone rather than Roswaal, Subaru's group attempting to talk to the dead (Echidna/Priscilla), even melancholy and vanity both being in close proximity (Clind in main/Pandora in sidestory). But I believe the most important mirror is the current locations of everyone.

In arc 4 the camp was split in two locations with Subaru forced to pick between the two. Arc 9 so far has the entire Emilia camp split into four different locations if you count Subaru's group at the tower, but I don't actually think something bad is going to happen there.

The reason I think the narrative has brought Subaru to the tower right now is because the library of Taygeta is the quickest way for Subaru to see all of the seperate Emilia camp groups across Lugunica have been killed, and he will be forced to pick between the three.

[spiegelgestalt]

So I finished LN 1 and immediately started LN 2 (and am currently at chapter 3) and I thought before I go on I should take a minute and collect my thoughts

Random yelling under the cut:

the first loop is kinda like a tutorial quest for Subaru. He learns nothing from it.

or to say it more precisely he learns the wrong lessons: Subaru kinda bumbles himself into a win during the first loop. None of what helped him win was planned. And to say it more precisely, what helped him win were random acts of kindness: Reinhard deciding to help while not on duty, Emilia saving that child and showing her nature through that, Subaru empathizing with Felt and Rom and winning there trust that way, Subaru letting Felt go because she is fifteen and he is seventeen (and that scene gave me feelings - he is such a good boy!!!) Felt deciding to not run away but instead to run screaming and crying to the main road and than Reinhard once again deciding to help. Kindness is important. Kindness can change the world. Being kind and helping others is the way forward. ( and in a way you could argue that Emilia was saved in the end because she decided to be kind to a random stranger with a particular ability - I'm actually really curious what happened in the run where Subaru died immediately - did Emilia survive, did she get her crest back, how much did Subaru change)

So Subaru could have learned a lot here: sometimes it's better to be the coward who lives instead of being the heroic fool in everyone's way; it's important to be kind, and also important to let others be kind to you; he's in an incredible weak position so it's important to learn as much as he can as fast as he can, Emilia is kinda badass... There could have been a lot

Sadly Subaru is trapped in a heroic fantasy and decided to rework the whole situation in a way where only the last moment counts were he took the hit for her and learned: I need to be a hero and do awesome stuff to be loved AND there is a right way to do things (there isn't)

its pretty telling that in the moment were Emilia smiles and tells him her name he says "it's not worth it at all" because what Subaru actually wants is Emilia to be indebted to him for the rest of her life, she's supposed to be the reward for all his suffering (no wonder he becomes resentful once she tries to distance herself) and so Emilia becomes Emilia-tan and Subaru will start to ignore every hint that she is waaaaay out of his league and that she doesn't need a protector

The last chapter from Reinhards perspective was really funny. Watching the series I never realized how low Reinhards self esteem is. I always thought he was just humble

The relationship between Felt and Rom was really sweet. I really hope they see each other again

Found family is a big theme in re:zero

I never realized how cold/emotionless Puck is

Spoiler for LN 2:They really sanded down Subarus edges for the anime. The scene were he pets Emilia's hair as a reward is suuuper uncomfortable (i still think he is a good boy at heart though)

[alderamiin]

IVE WON in bad resolution but WE’VE WON

[toon-topaz]

My Arc 7 experience starting off strong, this scene was so fucking gay like Subaru? Buddy? You wanna...you wanna talk about that maybe?

[lorian-loriest-dingo]

Arc 9 chapter 4

Soo The theories that Heinkel could join Emilia's camp were not crazy

🧍 The Astrea drama is still hot

Emiliaaaaaaaaaa

[suffarustuffaru]

so i talked a bit about reinjulisuba on this blog in the past like in this one ask but now ive made a quick and easy diagram summarizing their whole deal <3